Garded
by Mitsukuni-san
Summary: A frostiron fanfic. Stark has a secret but Banner knows, Loki has been captured and Stark has to 'baby sit', things happen that Tony never thought would, but will Tony get through it all? Reviews would be much appreciated :)


_AN - just a quick note, this is my first fanfic (took me and my friend ages to decide on what it would be about xD) that was meant to be a one shot and I got carried away xD helpful comments and such would be greatly appreciated =) My friend helped a lot, so a thank you to her ^.^_

_Obviously I do not own the characters, unfortunately haha. It is slash, there is also strong language and scenes of an *ahem* sexual nature xD you have been warned, enjoy =D_

Banner had been acting like he knew something since they had both stepped into the lab provided by S.H.I.E.L.D. Tony had been trying to work on the harnessing of dark energy but he was uncharacteristically distracted, he could feel Bruce throwing him knowing glances for no apparent reason and the last thing he needed was something or someone else to distract him. He had enough on his plate as it was; in fact he was surprised he hadn't picked up said plate and threw it at someone's head.

"Something bothering you Dr. Banner" Tony spoke sharply, a steely glint in his eye, a challenge.

Banner held his gaze, not deterred in the slightest. Stark was the kind of person you had to force things out of, he was certainly not one to talk about 'emotions' and 'girly' problems.

"Listen Stark, I know you're hiding something. Trust me; I'm an expert at hiding things. But this time, it is definitely not a smart move, you are going to self-destruct, and I sincerely think nobody wants that to happen." Tony felt like Banner was delving into the depths of his very mind just by looking at him, the admittedly strange thing was he didn't mind all that much since not many people knew how to talk to him properly, or even wanted to. For as long as he could remember he used to bottle things up, release his emotions through his technology but he never had a release when it got too much, or when he just needed comfort. Similar to how it was getting at the moment. Maybe, it actually might help talking to someone, but none of this girly emotional rubbish of course.

"Fine Bruce, can I call you Bruce? Never mind, don't answer that. I was going to call you Bruce anyways."

"Stark, you're rambling already." Banner was already beginning to think this conversation may test his patience.

"Fine right, I'm sorry. I… hmm… I don't really know where to start. I suppose, well, I have always hid things, one of my specialities it seems. But, you know when there is just this one thing you feel like you can't hide any longer but if you tell anyone it could possibly ruin you? Oh, well of course you do, you turn into a great big green rage monster. At any rate, that's what is bothering me."

Admittedly, Banner, well Bruce now apparently, was surprised he got anything at all out of him never mind that much. This led him to believe that it must be some enormous secret although, it seemed he already had an indication to what it may be.

"Well, I suppose the only thing that would help may be telling someone, how about Ms Potts? It seems you trust her." Before Bruce had even finished the sentence Tony looked horrified at the prospect of telling anyone, even someone he trusted.

"No! I can't tell anyone, it would ruin me, my reputation, people would hate me." Tony sat on the edge of the desk and put his head in his hands. He had never had to deal with something like this before and it was infuriating, he let out a sigh and decided to start ignoring Banner. Maybe, just maybe, if he ignored it then it would go away?

Banner snapped at him, "are you trying to say that people hate me for it, or are you just a special case?" He knew he shouldn't have but he needed to provoke it out of Stark.

Tony could not have looked anymore surprised if he tried, his eyes were wide with shock and his mouth hung open trying to find something to say.

"Shit!" Tony stood up swiftly and strode up to Banner, putting only a foot between them. Tony looked him dead in the eyes, but Banner could see the relief of someone knowing flit across his face. "How did you know?"

"I figured it out, it wasn't all that difficult" Bruce replied in all honesty. "Stark, nobody else knows, there is no need to panic".

"Don't you dare tell anyone!"

Tony stepped away from Bruce and sighed. "I'm so sorry about getting wound up; I just suppose it's strange for me. I mean, I'm Iron man, Tony stark an absolute icon, handsome, successful. I just feel that everyone expects me to be perfect".

Banner looked at him in complete disbelief, "you do know that it is not some kind of imperfection, being gay is just part of who you are, it isn't like you can change it, and believe me I have tried." Tony's face visibly twisted at the hearing of 'that' word and Banner was quite frankly getting annoyed, he didn't think he had anything else he could say to Stark, so he took the best option and just remained silence.

The silence was finally and thankfully broken, by Steve Rogers walking into the lab to take Stark to Fury.

"Hey cap, could the almighty pirate spy not contact me himself?" Steve just ignored the quip, as per usual, and ushered Tony out the door, leaving Banner to his own thoughts.

"Mr Stark, Nick Fury is very busy and we would all appreciate it if you would just this once listen to him".

"Ergh fine, but I'm only doing this so I can get out and away fast as possible." Steve smiled at the man, as if getting Tony Stark to do something was like conquering Everest.

"Yes, oh mighty one?"

"Stark!" Nick Fury glared at him. '_No nonsense as per usual' _Tony thought to himself smirking a little. Nick Fury chose to ignore this, "It's your turn to babysit 'real power'".

"Oh the absolute joy" Tony managed to pull the biggest shit eating grin he had ever mustered at Fury before he sauntered off to the cell. Fury glared after him boring a hole in his back until he was out of sight.

Loki stood in the centre of the cell patiently watching as Tony Stark sauntered in,

"Reindeer games! How are you finding the accommodation?"

Loki raised his chin and sneered in reply

"Well, if it isn't the man of iron."

"Tony, please" he threw a grin at Loki "Oh, and by the way, don't ever call me man of iron. You sound like your meathead of a brother." The sneer on Loki's face smoothed away instantly and before he could regain his composure a fleeting image of complete disdain crossed his features.

"That oaf is not my brother." Loki raised his lip in another sneer entirely directed at the way he felt about Thor.

Tony let out a small sound which could be construed as a laugh, "so you don't like him either huh?"

"Well, I would say that dislike was an understatement, I would be so rash to say I despise him with every fibre of my being." Loki smiled at this and flicked his eyes up so he could observe Stark.

"Hmm" Stark looked as if he just didn't care, or that he was trying not to. "There must be a very good reason why you hate him so much?"

"I have many reasons, however I will not divulge your uncouth way of asking."

Tony grinned back at him, "perfectly reasonable, but I certainly wouldn't say I was uncouth. Just more… unrefined."

"I am quite positive they mean the same thing" Loki's smile widened and for once, Tony thought that for once, he didn't look quite so evil or hate filled but that soon changed as soon as he stopped smiling.

"Whatever you say silver tongue, so, are you here on some kind of revenge mission against Blondie?"

"I shall keep my reasons to myself Mr Stark."

After Tony unusually decided to drop the subject, they were left to their own thoughts with Tony keeping a close eye on Loki. The silence was not altogether uncomfortable which allowed Tony to mull over his conversation with Banner however; all that endeavoured to do was to frustrate him all over again. Loki had been watching Stark sit and fidget for a while now and being the god of mischief thought this was a prime time to kill his boredom and to add fuel to the fire Stark was internally fighting.

"The whole team know your little secret Stark" Loki looked up for a reaction, and was rather surprised when he didn't procure one.

"You probably don't even know what you're talking about yourself Loki."

"Oh, believe me 'iron man' I most certainly do. I have seen the others looking at you, whispering behind your back."

"Shut up, just shut up!" Tony glared at Loki as he smirked, one side of his mouth lifting higher than the other. After approximately half a second Tony was absolutely horrified to realise he found the way Loki smirked quite endearing. The god caught the struggle with this realisation on Starks face and was pleasantly surprised, Loki may be a god hell bent on revenge but he could certainly appreciate good looks when he saw them and he most definitely saw them in Stark.

"I know what you were thinking 'Tony'". Loki locked eyes with his and he slowly licked his lips before smirking again and filling his gaze with a look that could seduce many to do his willing. Tony didn't know where to look, determined not to be provoked he chose to try and ignore him and leave, before he could make it to the door Loki shouted after him,

"If the public find out, they won't love you anymore Stark. Then you'll end up hiding away in the middle of nowhere like your little boyfriend Banner".

Tony stopped in his tracks, its seemed that was all that was needed for all of the emotion he had been trying to bottle up to explode. He spun around and smacked the open cell button as hard as he could before he stormed into the cell and grabbed Loki by his smooth pale neck and pinning him against the clear wall. Tony was a mixture of raging emotions, anger at Loki and himself, embarrassment for being called out so easily but mostly, he was confused. Why did he think Loki's neck was smooth? Why was he noticing how inviting his soft parted lips were? He shook his head trying to clear himself of these thoughts,

"Who the fuck do you think you are?! Talking to me like you know what I'm going through. You aren't better than anyone; you are acting like a pathetic petulant child! You want to destroy us because you have daddy issues! You need to grow the fuck up and realise this is pointless, all of it POINTLESS!"

After he had caught his breath Tony looked up and found himself looking in the understanding eyes of someone who knew exactly how he felt. The breath was momentarily took from his body as he suddenly realised how selfish he was, thinking he was the only one that had problems, he shut his eyes to block out the image; the knowing ice blue eyes practically piercing his soul. He slowly released the grip on Loki's neck, closing his eyes and sighing at his stupidity. His mind went into overdrive as he unexpectedly felt a surprisingly warm pair of lips upon his. Once he had took a moment and registered what was actually happening he felt a hot wet tongue slowly running across his lower lip softly demanding entrance to his mouth. Before his mind could catch up, his body had responded for him, slowly parting his lips and allowing Loki to explore his mouth, his tongue moved across Stark's, slowly and lingering. Loki quietly moaned at the taste of Stark, it was bitter and both sweet from how he took his coffee, and there was the taste of what can only be described as completely Tony Stark.

Tony was for once, at a loss for words. He has just shared, an admittedly, unexpectedly fantastic kiss with the person who he was seemingly meant to hate. He was positive Loki had just done something to him, he just couldn't describe what.

Tony began to back up before Loki grabbed his arm and in all sincerity told him to listen before he ran off and for once, Tony did as he was told.

"As you may already know or have figured out, I am not of the same blood as Odin and Thor, not even of the same realm. I am a frost giant, a Jötun, a monster parents tell their children of at night. However, they took me in and tried to accept me as their own especially Thor. He tried so hard to make sure I was included in everything as a child and would defend me when the warriors three used to jest about me being different and weak because I did not engage in physical battle and used magic instead. This pathetic teasing never did bother me; I could simply ignore it or get modest revenge in a more creative way which is why I ended up being called the trickster. Nevertheless, as we began to grown up I noticed something, I noticed Thor taking an interest in Sif, Fandral trying to gain the interests of many women of Asgard. I also noticed that I never felt inclined to act the same way, to attract the attention of a woman. One day I was simply walking through the streets of Asgard avoiding the warriors three and stumbled upon one of the male Asgardian warriors standing outside and I though he appeared more attractive than all of the women ever had. It was not like he was doing anything interesting of such, I was just taken by his beauty. After this small revelation, I did not want to remain confused as why I felt like that, so I went to talk to Frigg about what I had encountered. She explained everything to me and told me that I was what was known as gay and ergo was inclined to like men rather than women; naturally I didn't know the negative views of the Asgardians on being gay as Frigg was so open with me and I foolishly told Odin. Even though I was not his own son and he could be stricter with me I did not anticipate how he would react."

A look of pure pain and sadness clouded Loki's features as he took a deep breath finding the will to continue.

"He… Well he certainly acted adversely. He shouted and screamed at me, said I was no son of his, that I was a filthy Jötun, a monster that didn't belong. Looking back, I probably could have understood his shouting, yet it escalated. He proceeded to beat me across the hall throwing me into walls and across the floor; I cannot recall one part of me that was not in pain. It was lucky Frigg came and stopped him when she did, she was the only on that ever cared for me truly. Soon after, everyone in Asgard knew about me through the Allfather telling them, he done it on purpose. The warriors three didn't just torment me it became physical as well; they beat me until my magic wouldn't defend me anymore, until I was broken, mentally and physically. The worst thing after all of that happened though was Thor letting it all happen, he stopped defending me altogether, and he knew I was a freak in more ways than one. All I genuinely wanted was to be cherished and feel loved, but that never truly happened." Loki managed to remain stoic, blinking away the tears threatening to build up in his eyes not allowing himself to show any weakness.

Tony genuinely didn't know how to respond, he was still processing the extent of this information with tears threatening to fall from his eyes at the story of torment the man had been through. The more he thought about it he could possibly come to comprehend why Loki would be so angry as to take it out on Midgard.

"I am only telling this to you because I know you will understand."

"Loki... I, well I don't know what to say. That's, well, it's just awful. And I know how you feel about wanting to be loved, a friend of mine used to say it is sometimes because you look in the wrong places." Tony looked at him trying to express the empathy he felt for him through his eyes since words were betraying him. Loki seemed to understand, he realised he was still holding his arm then let go reluctantly.

"Listen, Loki, I'm sorry. I better go and report to Fury."

"I understand" Was the only reply Tony got as he stepped out of the cell and closed the door, taking one last look at Loki before he turned and walked out of the room.

Tony walked straight to his room in bewilderment; he was having a hard time trying to believe the past 24 hours had actually happened, the conversations and what the hell went on with Loki?! As soon as the door was closed behind him he located his bottle of scotch and forwent the glass, once he felt the comforting warmth of the strong alcohol sliding down his throat he started to relax. He definitely could not be bothered with doing anything else today, he was shocked at himself as usually he worked out his frustrations in the lab but in all honesty he felt he deserved the scotch in abundance.

_His tanned skin was slicked with sweat dampening the sheets that lay beneath him, his breath was coming in short pants as he felt the heat roll through his body and set every one of his nerves on fire. His hands grabbed at the sheets as he felt a teasing mouth move down his torso, biting, kissing, and sucking the tender flesh making him moan deeply and arch his back in pure pleasure serving to only spur the other on. He felt the lips ghost over where he needed them the most. Growling in the back of his throat he grabbed the silky hair of the one teasing him and bucked his hips up, pushing his aching member deep into his hot wet mouth. He swore out loud as he felt their tongue moving slowing over the sensitive head tasting the mans need for release, the lips around his throbbing organ tightened and began moving slowly up and down his shaft. He felt them moan as they took him deep in their mouth, the sheer sound of need sending shivers down his spine and straight to his groin. He didn't think he could hold on much longer, never had he been this needy for release, this turned on in all his life, he was practically begging for release. A few more moments were all it took, an explosive climax racking his body as his release filled the others mouth spilling down their throat. As he lay panting, eyes closed, still experiencing the aftermath of his orgasm he felt his partner move slowly up his body coming to rest with their legs either side of his hips. He slowly opened his eyes to see icy blue eyes clouded with lust, a glance down revealed a pink tongue slowly licking the residue off his lips savouring the taste. He pulled the other down flush on top of him and claimed his mouth with a slow kiss full of insatiable passion and need, sweat slicked chests were brought together as they kissed slowly, hands roaming needing to feel more._

"Stark? Tony, TONY!" Tony sat up faster than he really should of, taking note of the nearly empty bottle of scotch next to his pillow and the sudden pounding in his head. Once the fog in his mind had started to clear Tony decided it was safe to speak without his head feeling like Mj_ö_lnir had just fell onto it.

"For god's sake banner I was sleeping, what is so damn important?"

"For a start Tony I don't even want to know what you were dreaming about and secondly Fury wants us to 'assemble'". Banner let out an exasperated sigh at the thought of a team meeting again and left Tony to sort himself out.

Tony stood up and decided to wait for the room to stop trying to move before he walked over to the bathroom; once he had attempted to tidy himself up he looked in the mirror. Tired eyes looked back at him, eyes that looked like they had seen far too much and held so much pain and confusion. His eyes were outlined by dark circles that stood out against the sickly pallor of his face, he had never looked or felt this bad before and he wasn't sure that it could be fixed so easily. Tearing his eyes from his unsightly reflection Tony made his way to the meeting, he certainly wasn't looking forward to being around the others since they would notice straight away there was something off about him. Plastering on his attempt at a bright smile he walked through the door which was wiped of nearly immediately.

"Man of iron!" A loud arrogant voice filled his throbbing head; instantaneously the phrase reminded him of all the things Loki had told him in confidence yesterday. As much as he wanted to believe the god of mischief was merely lying he knew he wouldn't and an immediate feeling of anger for Thor filled him to the very brim. Thor noticed the drastic change in demeanour,

"Is there a problem man of iron?" '_God, his voice grates on me'_ Tony tried to act as his usual self and attempted a witty reply.

"Why, no there isn't man of L'oreal." This earned quite a gratifying snigger from Banner.

"What is this L'oreal you speak of?" It appeared that Thor speaking again was all it took to set Tony off, of course Tony knew there was a lot more to it than just a hangover and Thor's booming voice. All he could think of was Loki and he snapped.

"Well, Thor. For someone who claims to love your precious Midgard and the people in it, you know very little about it".

"Mr Stark, I don't think there was any need for that and maybe you two should back off." Steve Rogers said as he stepped between them, attempting to diffuse the situation.

"You back off Rogers" Tony shoved him out of the way and that is when all hell broke loose, everyone one of them was shouting something at someone. All of them except Banner who was quietly observing Tony's reaction to Thor, only confirming his suspicion that Loki had told him something that was apparently quite significant and more than likely a lie.

"Would all you motherfuckers calm the hell down?!" Nick Fury strode into the area immediately commanding everybody's attention as he usually did when he walked into any room. Fury diffused the situation by starting to talk before any could intervene.

"Listen, we don't have time for all your problems. We need to find the tesseract and find it fast. We still don't know what Loki is planning, but we know we have to stop it for all of our sakes." Tony risked a glance at Bruce and caught him gazing intently at him, he was starting to think that Bruce was definitely psychic and knew what was going on with Loki and it was perfectly creepy. As soon as Fury had went through all of the boring stuff that Tony was not interested in he left the room as fast as possible so he could hide in the lab for the rest of the day. The moment Bruce saw him leave he upped and followed, he had to find out what was going on, it seemed like the fate of the avengers depended on it. As soon as Tony heard Bruce walk into the lab he started talking, or more precisely ranting.

"That stupid, loud mouthed idiot! How is he even a god? I mean seriously, he is thick headed and arrogant. Just… URGH!" Tony paced up and down the lab clenching his fists seemingly not knowing where to put himself.

"You aren't normally this angry?" Yeah well, maybe you would like to share your secret of staying calm right about now. Bruce could see that subtlety would not work in a situation this serious anymore so he just had to bite the bullet,

"What did Loki tell you?" Tony's face fell.

"I knew it! You are psychic, and to be quite frank Bruce I find it creepy and would prefer it you refrained from doing it to me".

"Stop trying to be funny and stop avoiding the question, I'm being serious. What did Loki tell you?"

"Fine Banner, but I think it may be best if we don't tell anyone just yet." Tony looked around to make sure that the door was firmly closed and that JARVIS had shut down the security so no one would find out what he was about to say. Then, Tony pulled up a chair, sat down, and told him everything sans the kiss. He felt that he didn't need any more drama at the moment so maybe the kiss could remain his personal secret.

Telling Bruce everything really took it out of him, having to recall the look in Loki's eyes as he told him his story. Once he had finished speaking he let his head fall back and closed his eyes, as soon as he closed his eyes his apparently evil brain decided to remind him of his 'eventful' dream in great detail. His eyes shot open and his head snapped back up, he definitely needed more scotch, purely for calming purposes.

"Are you alright?" Bruce asked quietly while decided in his own mind that everything Loki said must be a lie.

Tony was reminded that he was not the only one in the room and decided that he did actually need to be alone before he come undone and told Bruce everything that was happening to him.

"Yeah sure, just tired. I, erm… didn't get much sleep." Tony got up and without saying another word exited the lab and made straight for his room. At the minute, all he really cared about was his need for a strong drink, when people say alcohol doesn't help they are lying. He quickly searched the room for another bottle since he might have drunk the other, ironically for the same reasons. With the bottle found he made his way over to the bed and sat down whilst taking the biggest drink he could, this was unquestionably all he was doing for the rest of the day. Naturally this wouldn't be the case as per usual the plans he made never work and after getting through half the bottle he got bored. Tony Stark was bored. After all of the sitting doing nothing and trying to think of nothing he now wanted to do something, and his great idea was to go and find Bruce and annoy him.

He stood up slowly just to make sure he was steady on his feet, well steady as one can be after having a 'hearty drink', he giggled to himself and wondered out of the room. Naturally as he was looking for Banner he went over to his room and walked in without knocking, it took Tony a second to realise that Bruce wasn't there which was unusual as he would usually come back here after spending sometime at the lab.

"Of course! He's in the lab." Tony said out loud to himself as he internally congratulated himself for being so smart, he could practically be Sherlock Holmes. He half ran, half walked to the lab which kind of ended up looking like he was skipping but he was alright with that. Well, the scotch made him alright with that. He threw the door to the lab open with a flourish,

"Bruceeyy! BRUCE, brucebrucebruce!"

Okay, now he was confused, since when was Banner not in his lab or his room? Of course the worry and confusion was fleeting considering he was slightly inebriated and needed something to do that didn't require the use of too many brain cells. Naturally he wouldn't think of any of the other avengers that happened to be on the helicarrier and his thoughts immediately strayed to Loki. Now, if he could annoy him, that would be fun, or even have a decent conversation since he was that bored. But mostly he wanted to annoy him, in a good way of course. As he was walking towards Loki's holding place it took him a few moments to realise that someone else was there, more than likely a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent babysitting him. He walked towards the door since he could just tell the agent to leave but he stopped just outside when he heard a familiar voice speaking to Loki.

"I know you are doing something to him Loki. I don't know what it is but it better stop. You have to be using some form of magic; he would never be like that over someone like you." Tony could hear the pure contempt in Banners voice as he spoke, naturally this only made him more curious as to what was going on so he got himself comfortable outside so he could listen in.

"Ha. Banner. If I wanted to corrupt him, I wouldn't have to use my magic."

_Who on earth is being corrupted? _Tony's mind was racing trying to sober up and figure out who they were talking about at the same time. _I bet it is Rogers, he is so gullible. _He had to stifle a chuckle at this thought before he heard Loki speak again.

"Although, he would probably be a much better servant than the little sparrow, skulking around and thinking he can hide. How pathetic! Yes, I can certainly think of many uses for the irresistible Mr Stark."

Tony froze. There was absolutely no way that this was happening, Banner couldn't find out. What was worse though was that Loki wasn't denying anything; he wasn't denying messing with him. Tony should have expected it though but he foolishly thought that maybe he wasn't really that evil, maybe there was good in him, he hoped. Never before had he hoped like that, but when he had it was all just a lie it didn't upset him, he was just angry. Angry at everything. It seemed that Banner was feeling the same.

"How dare you talk of him like that?! Like an object. You could never change; you will always be the same! Cold, heartless and evil! Leave my Tony alone you heartless fucking BASTARD!"

"Calm down Dr Banner, I certainly wouldn't want you stealing my lovely room now would I? We wouldn't want to keep you from 'your' Tony."

He had heard enough, before they figured out he was there he left promptly and went straight to his room. He didn't think he could deal with seeing anyone at the moment, and he certainly hadn't had enough to drink yet. Just as he left Loki's eyed flicked to the doorway and widened in realisation at what he had just done, what he had said trying to save the both of them and just maybe at what he had lost.

Tony threw himself down on the bed and didn't even have the heart to get angry, he was just tired. Tired of everything never working out for him, of it all going wrong all of the time but, who was he kidding? Loki? Who would expect anything less from the god of mischief himself, using people to his advantage is just what he does best, even though tony still hadn't figured out his ulterior motive there had to be one. There was no other explanation.

He sat up on the bed and ran his hands through his messy hair and tried to dry his eyes, when had he cried? And for once in his life Tony Stark decided that the last thing he needed was another drink which surprised him considerably. However another surprise was to soon outweigh that as an earsplittingly loud crash shook the helicarrier throwing him off the bed onto the hard floor.

"OH FOR GOD SAKE! You just can't get a break around here!"

All he could hear was the sound of battle and panic, people shouting and guns firing but the worst thing was he just could not bring himself to care. He had never felt this low and it was his entire fault, the one time he decided to feel and not be the uncaring playboy he pretended to be the whole thing blew up in his face. After what seemed like only a few moments to Tony silence started to settle over the helicarrier and the smell of smoke filtered through the air. He had been so absorbed in his own problems that the thought of helping in what could be a serious crisis had not even crossed his mind, anyone could be hurt and he could have stopped it. He jumped up off the floor and sprinted down the hall trying to find someone who could tell him what was going on and of all the people to find he found Thor.

"Thor, what the hell happened!?"

"My brother, he is gone. An escape."

"NO! No, nonono. This is my fault, I could have helped, and I wasn't here to stop it."

"Don't blame yourself man of iron, there were many people that tried and failed"

"Do not try to console me." Tony snapped at him, looking him dead in the eyes. "If I couldn't have helped then, then I will damn well help now."

He spun around leaving a slightly bewildered Thor behind him and made his way to the security rooms; if he couldn't stop him from escaping then he could find the conniving bastard and bring him back. Although, with him being gone, as much as S.H.I.E.L.D. need to capture him, Tony might actually get some peace of mind and maybe his every waking (and even dreaming) thought would not be of the tempting god.

Once he had found his way to the security rooms, this place was a maze; he began looking for the security videos for the cell that Loki was kept in and managed to locate them in seconds, with the help of JARVIS of course. Abruptly a startling thought hit him, if there was footage of all his time in the cell then there would be footage of that damned kiss! He frantically asked JARVIS to locate it however there was completely no evidence of the footage; it would take someone with a vast amount of skill and knowledge to delete something like that.

"Stark." A soft voice pulled him from his thoughts and back to the unfortunate reality of the situation and he turned around to face the person who had disturbed him.

"Oh. Bruce, listen, I know it was you who deleted that footage there is no one else that could. Why?"

"I knew it could be used against you, it could ruin you and I'm sure neither of us wants that to happen."

Bruce stepped closer to Tony and pulled him in to a comforting hug apparently knowing exactly what he needed. Tony pulled closer to him seeking comfort and warmth in his arms, he pulled back to break the hug and found himself staring at full pink lips.  
He knew he shouldn't, he knew it was only because he was hurting, but he simply could not help himself and he softly placed his lips upon Banner's. Bruce's eyes widened in surprise before they closed slowly allowing him to give in, he felt Tony's arms tighten around his waist pulling him closer until there was nothing between them. Bruce knew he had wanted this for a while but he knew Tony was only doing this out of anger and the need for comfort however he just could not let a chance like this slip so he held onto Tony like his life depended on it. Tony felt him react and couldn't help but wanting more, he knew it was only because he could not get what he really wanted, pale flesh moving beneath him, fingers tangled in silky black hair, a wanton god moaning at his touch. Tony let a small moan at the thoughts, snapping him back to reality. He needed to forget about this and he stupidly thought he knew how.  
He moved his hands down Bruce's back slipping them under his shirt, touching the soft warm skin eliciting a gasp, as his lips parted Tony took the chance to let his tongue explore the others mouth becoming more heated with each moment passed. As they separated for air Tony grabbed his hand and all but dragged him back to his room, making sure that no one saw them he pushed Banner into the room and locked the door behind them. Tony closed the gap between them and resumed the heated kiss edging Banner back towards the bed and lowering him down, he broke the kiss momentarily to remove their shirts before he started paying attention to Banner's neck. Bruce whimpered lightly and started to move beneath Stark pushing his hardening length into his thigh, moaning increasingly louder at the friction. He pulled away from claiming his neck and moved to undo his pants, sliding them off along with his underwear before he did the same to the man lying beneath him, breath shallow and face flushed. They both groaned as they felt their hard lengths rub against each other, getting the friction and touch they both needed. Tony, feeling the need build inside him, became impatient and fumbled around for the bottle of lube he kept near the bed and coated his fingers quickly. He moved in between Banner's legs and slowly pushed two fingers inside him, moving them slowly, preparing him before he added a third. As much as he wanted it to be pleasurable for Banner he couldn't wait any longer he slowly removed his fingers then lined up to his entrance and started to enter him at a gradual pace. Once he was fully inside all his attention and control went out of the window and he started to move at an unrelenting pace, the man beneath him moaning loudly in both pain and pleasure. A thin layer of sweat started to cover Tony's skin as he felt a familiar sensation pooling in his stomach, he quickened his pace again as he wrapped his hand around the others shaft and started moving his hand in time with his thrusts rapidly bringing them both to climax.  
After a few moments of getting his breath back Stark got up and handed Banner a towel to get cleaned up, he then got dressed relatively quickly and headed to the cabinet in his room for a drink. Screw not drinking, he needed it, he hated feeling regret. Banner watched him pour the amber liquid into his glass and start drinking,

"Tony? Are you alright?" He immediately chastised himself for asking such an obviously stupid question that was bound to be pointed out, but either Stark was being too kind or didn't care and answered regardless.

"Honestly, no. But I am sure I will be, or can be in time."

Banner decided to just leave him to it and hurriedly got dressed and headed off to the lab so Tony could be with his own thoughts, as much as he thought that was a bad idea he did not want to be there if Tony decided to get angry at him for what had happened.

Eventually after a couple of days, what could have been a cooling period, Tony finally decided to approach him in the lab.

"I just wanted to say sorry." The statement was quick and ended in silence as Tony looked away, with only the whirr and clicks of machines and computers to remind them where they were. Bruce stepped up to him and placed his hand on Tony's cheek, moving his face so Tony would look at him.

"I know you may think what you done was a bad thing, but honestly to me it wasn't. Only the reason for doing it."

"I am still so sorry, I just want to try." The look in Tony's hazel eyes was one of desperation, desperation for comfort and trying to replace what he had wanted, never thought he could have and then lost. Banner knew that he wasn't what Tony really wanted or ever will, but maybe he could be what he needed and he could always pretend although it would only cause him hurt.

"I know, I know." Bruce placed a chaste kiss on Tony's lips and turned to resume his work, only hoping that Tony would come to the realisation that he was all he needed.

After weeks of searching, coming up with nothing and working in the lab nonstop, while also trying to be together, both Bruce and Tony were surprised when the usual slave driver Nick Fury decided to let them leave for a short while as nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be happening. Of course it was on the strict condition that they were to come straight back if anything happened. This apparently applied to everyone, except it was only Tony who actually desired to leave. Bruce decided to stay as he was the best chance they had of tracking the tesseract and he also thought Tony needed a break; it seemed Tony was becoming increasingly worried because nothing had happened, even though Bruce knew it was because he thought Loki was gone for good and would never see him again. While Bruce was trying to be there for Tony, attempting some kind of normal relationship it seemed that all Tony though of was Loki. He may not have mentioned him but he could see it in his eyes, it would always seem like a distant longing and sadness but soon turn to hate as if he didn't know whether he wanted to see him again for either desire or for revenge.

Tony left as soon as he could after a short goodbye to Banner and headed straight for stark tower, he just wanted to be alone in his own lab, with no one to interfere. As soon as he got there he pretty much ordered everyone to leave him alone, luckily Pepper was away doing something to do with business so he had the whole top floor to himself. As per usual he headed straight to the expensive bar and searched through all of the bottles until he came across the strongest drink regardless of what it was, he forewent the glass and went straight to his plush couch, sat down and became lost to the world. He must have fallen asleep after his 'small' drink, as he checked the clock he noticed with great surprise it was two o'clock the next afternoon. When he sat up he felt a familiar throbbing in his head and dryness in his mouth, he slowly stood up and decided a relaxing hot shower would sort him out. As he undressed and stepped in the steaming shower an immense sense of relief wash over him along with the spray of water. He was glad to be alone, without having to worry and without having to pretend around Banner. Yes he supposed he liked him, even needed him but it just wasn't right to lie to him like that, giving the man false hope when he knew he could probably never be with anyone in all honesty unless it was the man he wanted. He was starting to become positive that Loki had used some kind of trickery to make him like this.

He stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, the water trailing down his torso leaving droplets on the floor as he walked to his bedroom. He removed the towel from his waist and dried himself off before getting dressed; he decided that he could work on his suit since he had a bit of spare time. Just as he had pulled his jeans on JARVIS spoke over the speakers.

"Sir, it appears that there is someone standing outside."

"We at the top of Stark tower, how could that be possible?" Tony's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"I do not know sir; however it appears that they are not going to leave." Tony started walking towards the living area getting ready to see who could possibly be on the balcony.

"JARVIS, have my suit ready, you know, just in case."

Forgetting he had only jeans on, he stepped up to the glass doors letting them be opened for him and cautiously turned the corner onto the large balcony, a breeze ruffling his still damp hair. His eyes widened in shock as he searched for something to say, he had thought of all the things he could say if he ever saw them again but words escaped him.

"Why?" Everything he wanted to know summed up in one pathetic word that made his voice falter as it passed his lips. He didn't want to seem weak and needy, but he couldn't help it, he was just so confused about everything. However, as soon as striking blue eyes met his he felt a sense of comfort and calm fill him and he forgot his anger and confusion. The eyes moved over him seemingly drinking in his image, making him realise he was only in jeans. He cleared his throat, the eyes looking back to his face, waiting for him to break the silence.

"We might as well go inside since you obviously must be here for a reason." He walked back inside checking to make sure he was being followed.

"Drink?"

"I would not say no." The voice rolled over him, sending a shiver down his spine making him pretty much certain as to why they called this man silver tongue, or maybe it was for other reasons? Before he became distracted he poured two glasses of the finest whiskey he could find and handed one over, feeling cool fingers touch his as he retrieved the glass from his hand.

"Why? Why have you done this to me? I know you have used some kind of magic I just can't explain it any other way. And it hurts, Loki, it hurts not knowing why."

"I don't know why you think I would use magic to do that to you, I couldn't do that."

"STOP!" Tony's voice had been filled with anger. "Don't try that shit on me! I know you can trick people with your words, but not me. You have tricked me enough." Tears started to fill Tony's eyes, tears of anger, hurt and sadness spilled down his face. "I heard it! I heard you and Banner. I know you were using me for something, trying to 'corrupt' me." His voice started crack as he was talking, he was just getting tired of all this, why would he have to fall for a god of trickery and lies.

"LISTEN!" Loki's authoritarian voice commanded his attention straight away. "Tony, please listen to me. What you heard between me and Banner was me saving you from trouble. Banner knew something had happened because he can read you like an open book. I had to say those things so he wouldn't see me as a huge threat, like I was only playing with you. He loves you Tony but I know you don't feel the same way."

Loki's eyes stared straight into Tony's seemingly piercing his soul and baring everything he felt to the Jötun.

"I know how awful I have been and everything I done is beyond repair, but I was just so angry. I was essentially cast from Asgard for being who I was and trying to show Odin I was better than him. I just wanted revenge, I wanted them to be sorry for what they done to me, and I wanted someone who understood who I was. I found the third one in someone who I least expected. They told me I was looking in the wrong places, and I am pretty much sure this is the right place."

Tony could not believe what he was hearing; he had never heard something so honest. More tears were falling from his eyes, now it seemed from happiness and relief; they were rolling down his face and landing silently on the lavish rug.

"I know that we aren't so different you and I Tony." Loki stepped forward and placed a pale hand over his glowing arc reactor, surprised at being trusted enough to do so. "We have been through the same things albeit in different ways." He lifted his other hand and placed it softly on the side of Tony's face, using his thumb to wipe away the wetness on his cheek. Tony looked up and gave the smallest of smiles before he grabbed Loki's wrists and pulled him in to a crushing hug. After finally letting him go he placed his hand on the back of Loki's neck, fingers threading through soft black hair and pulled him into a kiss that was so full of passion and love he felt like fire and ice were running through his veins at the same time. Loki responded to the kiss fervently, pushing his hips towards Tony's needing to be closer. The kiss ignited within them a need for each other that they had never felt before, a desire to be together so strong it filled them with a burning passion.

Loki broke the kiss for a moment to mumble the word bed before Tony took his hand and all but ran to the bedroom; they both fell onto the bed while Loki closed the door with a wave of his hand. Loki pushed the other man onto his back and sat with a leg either side of his hips feeling the man's arousal through the materials of their pants, he leant down and slowly ran his tongue over Tony's throat before lightly biting at the soft flesh underneath his ear eliciting a gasp. Loki felt Tony's hand sliding up the midgardian shirt he had donned, the warm touch sending a shiver down his back. Loki sat up slowly, grinding into the man beneath at the same time making both of their breaths quicken at the friction. He started to slowly unbutton the grey shirt he was wearing and once it was unbuttoned letting the material slide slowly off his shoulders and down his arms, gradually exposing a lean and toned torso and an expanse of pale skin waiting to be touched. Tony reached up and while bringing him into another searing kiss flipped them both over moving to unbutton Loki's pants with one hand and exploring his chest with the other. Loki quickly toed off his shoes and shifted to allow for his clothing to be removed. After his pants had been taken off and Tony finding out he wasn't fond of underwear, Loki raised himself onto his elbows and started to kiss the sensitive skin around Tony's arc reactor before wrapping his lips around a pink nipple making Tony moan in fervour. He ran a hand down Tony's stomach and followed the dusting of dark hair down to the waistband of his jeans, teasingly running his nails along the dip in his hips before reaching to rid the man of the extra material. Once the jeans were upon the floor Loki moved his hand over the thin cloth of his boxers and ran his fingertips softly over him before flipping them back over and pulling down the boxers swiftly. When the boxers had joined the jeans Loki moved down the bed and started to kiss, lick and nibble the soft skin on the inside of his thigh making Tony's body start to heat up in anticipation. As he moved further up, Tony closed his eyes as he felt the gods tongue moving slowly up his shaft before tasting the arousal that had already gathered at the tip. Tony groaned loudly as a hot wet mouth engulfed him and a wicked tongue circled around the head causing him to buck his hips, wanting more. Loki Swallowed as much of his length as he could and started moving his head up and down encouraged by the hand tangled in his hair, the fingers curling at the increasing pleasure. Tony started to feel a familiar sensation in the pit of his stomach but he didn't want it to end there, he placed his hands on Loki's shoulders and pulled him into another kiss tasting himself on sweet lips. He quickly searched for the lubrication that he had and as soon as it was in his hand Loki had took it off him and was slicking his hand. Loki looked Tony dead in the eye as he wrapped his hand around Tony's throbbing member and started long hard strokes, causing Tony to close his eyes and bite his bottom lip in pure pleasure. Tony opened his eyes once the ministrations had stopped to be pulled on top of Loki with Long pale legs wrapped around his waist. Loki looked at Tony with eyes heavy lidded and hazy from unadulterated lust, Tony wrapped a hand around Loki's impressive length provoking a deep moan before starting to push into Loki agonizingly slowly prolonging the pleasure.

"Ah, Fuck! Tony." Loki's breath came in quick succession with the pleasurable sensation, the slight pain being overshadowed. Tony let out an animalistic growl at the feeling of him being engulfed by tight heat before he started moving slowly; feeling nails digging into his shoulders leaving small red crescents in their wake.

"Faster, oh gods please faster" Loki's wanton moans and the heat of the moment had the sweat of arousal dripping down his toned torso and he picked up his pace, thrusting into him with uncontrolled abandon. The moans became louder and the thrusts became erratic as both neared their release, Tony wrapped a hand around Loki's length and started pumping in time with his thrusts. Moments after Loki's release had spilled over his hand and Loki's pale stomach as Tony reached his own release shouting Loki's name as an intense orgasm racked his body. The only sound in the room was the fading moans and panting of the two spent men, Tony lay down next to Loki feeling the heat radiating off his skin that was glowing with a thin sheen of sweat. All they could do was lie there, Tony with one arm wrapped protectively around Loki's chest and Loki's head tilted so he could look into the face of his lover.

Around half an hour had passed as the two lay in comfortable silence next to one another, at some point one of them had pulled a blanket over their legs to get rid of the chill. The silence was then broken by the contented god,

"Could this ever work?" Loki asked as he used a hand to gesture to the two of them.

"Honestly, I don't know. But no one ever does when it comes to things like things. It just happens that this might be a bit more complicated."

Loki gave the most genuine smile Tony though he had ever saw,

"You certainly have a way with words Mr Stark."

"Coming from you silver tongue?" Tony laughed as he sat up before his features fell into a dejected look of acceptance.

"You will have to leave won't you?"

"For a while yes." Loki sat up and placed a hand on Tony's shoulder,

"They will track the power of then tesseract here and they will look for me. I will have to go, but only for a while. I promise I will come back" he placed a kiss Tony's neck before he moved to get up and get dressed.

"What about all of the attacks, the things you have done?"

"I know I can't take back any of that and can only hope you know how sorry I am, but I swear nothing else will happen. And I am only doing this for you Tony Stark; I am not losing the one good thing I have found."

"When will you be back?"

"I do not know, but I definitely will be." When he had finished dressing Loki offered a hand to Tony who took it in a gentle hold and stood up in front of him. There were no more words, only a lingering kiss, no passion just love, and then he was gone.

"I will wait, I promise." Tony spoke as if someone were still there to hear him before falling onto the bed and shutting out the world.

_One month later_

After Tonnes of paper work and a terribly confused and annoyed Nick Fury each avenger had went their own way. Tony finally decided to tell Banner the truth, well not the entire truth, well he told him he didn't want to be with him at least. What he didn't know couldn't hurt him. Thor had gone off to continue searching for his brother, Steve had probably gone on a vacation and the other agents were assigned different missions. And Tony, Tony was still working on upgrading his suit and trying to improve Stark industries with new ground breaking ideas and waiting.

He was currently sitting on a brand new couch, courtesy of some businessman trying to get in his good books, as he went over some files with a nice glass of champagne after closing another deal. He had certainly been kept busy, but no matter how busy he was he always knew he was waiting,it was always there, a nagging in the back of his head telling him he would be waiting forever. Yet he was praying it wouldn't be for that much longer, it seems someone had heard his prayers.

"Celebrating?" A familiar and sorely missed voice saw Tony's head snap up in surprise from the tablet he was looking at.

"Fuck! Loki?" A grin lit up Tony's features "You have no idea how much I have missed you." Suddenly his expression suddenly changed to one of panic and worry.

"Loki, you need to get out of here now! Quickly!" Loki frowned in misunderstanding,

"Why?"

"Listen there are agen…"

"STAY WHERE YOU ARE! Requesting immediate back up, Stark tower. Target has been captured."

Before he could react Loki's wrists were grabbed and cuffed, the cuffs seemed to drain Loki to the point of uselessness, a point where he could not use his magic and escape.

"Tony! What is happening?" Loki's eyes pleaded with him as Tony looked around the room in panic, seemingly not knowing what to do.

"I'm sorry, I was just… I was so happy to see you. I forgot… they have been watching the tower. All the time, constantly. Since the tesseract. I tried to warn you, I'm sorry." Tony was stopped by two SHIELD agents from coming any closer or following them as they carelessly dragged Loki away.

Tony couldn't quite grasp what had just transpired, he had been waiting so long for him to come back, but he is gone again and it is his entire fault for not being quick enough to save him. As soon as the shield agents had left all he could manage to do was slowly make his way to the bar and drink himself into oblivion, he could not let himself think about what he had just done. Three hazy days, well hazy for Tony, had passed when the Avengers were called to make sure Thor got Loki and the tesseract safely of earth. Tony dragged himself off the floor, how did he end up there? He managed to have a fast shower before swallowing a couple of painkillers and heading to the departing site.

It appears he was the last one to arrive and when he exited his car he couldn't even look around at everyone for fear they would see in his eyes what had truly happened keeping his eyes firmly locked on the ground or checking his phone. He could not even bear to think of the fact Banner was there, more than likely looking at him with disappointment and disgust, knowing where Loki had been caught. He then heard a voice that filled him with rage; he clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms trying to calm him down at the sound of Thor's booming idiotic voice.

"Thank you my friends, I can take care of it from here, you have been of great service."

Tony looked up to see the great blonde oaf holding Loki tightly by the arm, there was dirt all over his face and clothes and more dirt matted in his hair, there was also what appeared to be dried blood on his face making Tony shake with heightened rage. The worst thing was the muzzle, there was no need for a muzzle, and he did not need to speak to use magic. The only reason would be to keep him quiet so he could not taunt them or talk his way out, or maybe it was some sick power thing that they got a kick out of, knowing he was bound and could not escape. There was no words to describe how angry Tony was at this, it had only been three days and he looked like he had been beaten and tormented constantly, he never thought S.H.I.E.L.D. would do something as bad as this. Thor turned to each of them and nodded in respect although the one to Stark was rushed and stiff he then turned and stood facing Loki, the tesseract between them ready to act as a portal. A familiar blue glow filled the area, just before they left Loki caught Tony's eyes and it was a look of genuine desperation.  
And then they had left, leaving a faint blue glow in their wake which disappeared momentarily. He would probably never see Loki again, but he had made a promise he would wait. It was all he could do.

Thor and Loki appeared in the Great hall of the Allfather and a sense of impending doom fell over Loki. The Allfather refused to meet Thor when they arrived as he claimed that he would not look upon the filth he was bringing back with him. A deep and powerful voice filled the hall moments after they had arrived.

"Loki Laufeyson, you are charged with crimes too countless to name and too shameful to describe." Loki recognised the voice of the Allfather making his crimes seem worse than what they were and dreaded what was to come next for he had heard it once before, when a sick rapist and murderer was sentenced. "You are hereby sentenced to an eternity of suffering for your crimes. Death is too kind; people like you need to suffer."

He knew exactly what he meant by his kind, he knew he was mostly being punished for what he was and who he was. This was happening because he was a monster, not really one of Asgard, especially since he was in love with another man. Loki unashamedly let tears flow from his terrified eyes, as he was dragged down a small corridor to a room he knew in his heart would be full of endless tortures. He was roughly pushed into a pitch dark room landing on a hard cold floor feeling and hearing his shoulder pop from the socket, causing more tears, this time of pain, to flow from his eyes. He then felt the muzzle being ripped off revealing sore, chapped bloody lips, he knew they wanted him to scream and he knew he would end up giving them the satisfaction. He had heard storied as a child about the tortures that went on in here, stories that gave him night mares and now he was in one. After a minute of deafening silence, feeling his heart pound inside his chest and each nerve alive with fear he heard a door open.

A heart wrenching scream echoed in the hidden narrow dank hallways of the majestic palace, drifting up to the hall followed by countless more screams of pain and terror. Almost an hour had passed and through sickening tortures all that could be heard were defeated whimpers before the screams were renewed. In the hall Odin sat upon his throne, a smirk forming upon his lips wrinkling the corner of his eye the other covered with a ornate eye patch. Yes, those screams were only the beginning, there was much worse to come and Loki would be shown no mercy.

* * *

_For those of you that hate a bit of a cliff hanger the sequel 'Midguardian' is finished and can be read here ( s/8962439/1/Midguardian ) or go through my profile ^.^ Thanks for reading =)._


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